Over a year has passed since the release of Dragon Quest IX in Japan. Selling close to 5 million copies in that time, the game has finally made it to Western shores. Can the game achieve the same level of success over here, and does the 9th entry in the series live up to its predecessors?

Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Sky (its western only subtitle) is a game of risks. First off, the game is a full DQ sequel on the Nintendo DS. It’s not a spinoff or a side story, but the sequel to the PS2 classic VIII. Add to this the new focus on a multiplayer experience and this is definitely a new breed of Dragon Quest game. You and up to 3 other friends can journey together, each with fully customisable characters though the experience still has one main host, the only person who progresses in the story. With no Wi-Fi support though, the appeal of this is lost slightly on Western shores. It’s a step away from the conventional series format that can often work for the better, but as with any Co-Op focused game, the single player experience has suffered. (more…)

While checking out the pictures on the App Store for SnoShred prior to downloading it for review, I began to become excited at the prospect of playing such a good looking Snow Boarding simulator on my iPhone.

What I wasn’t ready for was how unplayable SnoShred actually is. The design is basic, giving you the option to pick between a male or female character, which board you ride and a course from the paltry selection and your off. Once on the board though things begin to take a turn for the worst as you attempt to steer your surprisingly good looking character through gates and over jumps. This is rarely fun thanks to the poor motion control that forgoes any actual control over your rider, instead forcing you to turn your iPhone ridiculous amounts to make any change in direction occur.

Graphics are smooth, despite the bland textures of the snow grating after only a few minutes. But what good are graphics when in a mode where pulling off near impossible tricks is necessary to win. To pull off tricks in SnoShred you have to gain speed by pressing the acceleration button, below which is an area that must be held in order to jump. If you’ve acheived this, then you have to move your thumb back to where it was before to pull off tricks. Its far too frustrating to enjoy and could have been so easily fixed by moving the jump ‘button’ to the other end of the screen.

I really can’t recommend SnoShred to anyone looking for snowboarding action on their phone. Yes the game is pretty but there’s very little fun to be had here.

2K Games has announced details of exclusive DLC coming to the PS3 version of Mafia II on release day.

Included in every new copy of the game (activated via a code in the sealed box), The Betrayal of Jimmy is a set of arcade style missions where you play as Jimmy, the muscle of your Mafia family. Purely focused on the action sections of Mafia II, this seems to be quite a substantial extra piece of DLC supposedly worth $9.99 on the PSN if you pick up the game preowned.

This is yet another example of closing content off to those who buy a game pre-owned, though for Mafia II this content is locked for 360 owners too.

Look for more on Mafia II as we approach the game’s August release, and check out 3 screens from the DLC below.

With PlayStation Move just 2 months away, Sony have confirmed the configurations for each of the bundles heading to North America on launch.

For those yet to purchase a PS3, a pack priced at $399.99 will include the console, a DualShock 3, a PlayStation Move Controller, PlayStation Eye and a copy of Sports Champions; everything you need to get started with Move. For $99.99 those who own a PS3 already will be able to get the same deal, probably the highest price Sony could have got away with for an optional peripheral like this. Standalone Move controllers will cost $49.99, while the optional Navigation controller (A DualShock 3 serves the same purpose) will set you back $29.99.

Check out all three ways to buy a Move Controller in the gallery below, and look for PlayStation Move on US stores on September 19th.

For a DS sequel to one of the most well loved, but low selling PS2 titles the collector’s edition pictured above might seem a tad extravagant.

Most likely conceived as a thank you to the few but hugely dedicated Okami fans in the world, Okamiden will be packaged in a huge box with a selection of exclusive trinkets. The best of the bunch has to be the super cute headphones pictured below, though the DVD, soundtrack cd, Artbook and plushie keyring are sure to be adored by fans too.

The offer is set to hit Japanese stores when the game releases on September 30th, pricing reaching ¥8000 (Around $90). Let’s hope that Okami fans in the West will have the same opportunity when Okamiden reaches our shores next year.

Nintendo producer and current innovator du jour, Hideki Konno confirmed in an interview with Wired Magazine this week that the ‘DS on ‘roids’ look of the 3DS was final design for the product.

When Nintendo first unveiled the 3DS, it was stressed that the design shown wasn’t final, like the DS, which went through a fairly radical redesign between first being shown off and hitting retail shelves. Now it appears that the final appearance of the 3DS will remain largely unchanged between now and the handheld’s release.

Asked by Wired whether the 3DS’s outer appearance could change between now and whenever it’s actually released, Nintendo’s Hideki Konno replied, “You can take this as the final shape.”

Konno also confirmed that the on-board gyroscope would let the 3DS behave like the Wii MotionPlus does, giving it more finite control over unit than previous. He also said that a way to improve the device or advance the glasses-less 3D technology is to “make it larger.” This would undoubtly be released as the 3DS XL and conversely, the 3DS Mini because we all know what direction Nintendo takes before it makes things bigger.

Nintendo might know how to make a mint, but it’s certainly not with bold design choices.

As if by accident, and much to the dismay of GameInformer who had exclusive rights to the announcement, EA have said that Dragon Age 2 is in development.

In a Press Release for their upcoming Warhammer MMO the current projects for developers BioWare were mentioned; a sequel to Dragon Age Origins was buried in there. The August issue of GameInformer cover is pictured above, the first artwork for the game adorning the cover.

Expect some detailed launch information on Dragon Age 2 when the magazine is released.

E3 2010 has been a memorable one. Lots of wonderful announcements about how gamers will be spending their hard earned money for the next year or so. With things finishing up, we decided to poll the writers and get some of their overall thoughts. Basically we asked 3 simple questions. Read on for each set of answers:

1. What was the biggest surprise for you coming out of E3?

Shea Haley– The xbox slim! I had no idea they were going to come out with a new console, but once they announced it, it made sense. With Wi-Fi included, internal memory and smaller than the other xbox consoles, I was sold!

Lloyd Hannesson- Metal Gear Solid: Rising. To have the game not only star Raiden, but be focused mainly on swordplay seems like a nice departure for me. I’m a little concerned with how this will play, and if chopping things up for 8+ hours will grow tiresome, but I have a lot of faith in Kojima Productions to do it right.

Josh Miller-Watt– The 3DS. I mean, the device went from being talked about conceptually, with nothing but a confirmation it was being developed and some vague facts to being fully designed, with a lineup of games already underway. I figured that since the DSi is just over a year old, we’d have a while longer before we started getting ready for the new handheld peripheral. I was clearly wrong. But in a good way!

Jared Schulz- Kid Icarus actually coming. Sure it has been rumored a long time but let’s be honest it has become a running joke among Nintendo-philes that Kid Icarus is coming back every year. Coming back on the 3ds is a great strategy move in my opinion. Nintendo just sold a bunch of 3ds units to all of us who have been wanting to revisit Kid Icarus for years!

Sam Atkins- Nintendo delivering for once was by far the biggest surprise of E3. With the most to prove they showcased brilliant game after game, Zelda being the perfect way to open the show.

Jonathan Harrop- Honestly, the new 360 is a step in the right direction and was not something I was at all expecting. 3DS, PS Move, Kinect, we all knew those were coming but this was a surprise. The biggest surprise? Built in Wifi. This is a step in the right direction for Microsoft and man, if that thing has an internal power supply, count me in ASAP.

Joe Cruickshank – Eighty-four minutes into the Sony conference the lights dimmed and the unmistakable voice of GLaDOS echoed over the speakers, followed by the unmistakable silhouette of Valve head Gabe Newell taking to the stage. Newell has been one of the most vocal detractors of the PS3, at one point calling it “a total disaster”. To see him not only pledging support to the console, but also revealing the first trailer for the fantastic looking Portal 2, was a surreal moment indeed. Surreal, but excellent.

Here it is, the last of our 3 Press Conferences at E3 in 2010. Sony have consistently proved they can withstand any major announcements from the other two first parties with their own shockers and overall sense of quality in their line-up.

With a combination of the major elements of the other two conferences, Sony showed both 3D and Motion tech off, a combination of both being the ‘next step’ in gaming. 3D kicked off the proceedings, with a brilliant demonstration of Killzone 3, the look of disgust on people’s faces who had just experienced Nintendo’s glasses free 3D in having to put glasses on was priceless. (more…)

For Sony, as was the case with Microsoft this year, motion control has been the hot topic of E3 2010.

Priced at $49.99 for the Move Controller and $29.99 for the Navigation controller, a budle that features a Move, Playstation Eye and launch title Sports Champions will cost $100, not bad considering the price of a Wii remote with WiiMotionPlus.

Surprisingly for those over seas, the UK pricing will be much more generous, with a Move and Navigation Controller being the expected £40 and £30 respectively, but the bundle mentioned above being just £10 more.

The first accessories have also been unveiled, the above official charging station looking much slicker than any equivenlent for the Wii Remote. Also announced was a gun attachment; Sony allowed it to look actually look like a Gun too, this is no Zapper equivelent (pictures below).

Expect plenty more news of the Playstation Move as we gear up for its release on September 19th.

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Email Address

Nukoda is a news blog detailing the latest news in gaming, movies and all other things geek.

We are currently going through a relaunch into more of a PlayStation VR focused blog. News, reviews and gaming snippets will be coming in the near future! Please hang out with us as we make this switch!